Pro Hockey Rumors Originals

Poll: Who Will Win The Atlantic Division In 2019-20?

By Gavin Lee | at September 30, 2019 3:33 pm

We’ve finally reached the end of the offseason and things kick off this week around the NHL. Exhibition games are underway in Europe and final cuts have come down all around the league. The excitement for the upcoming season is palpable, with even the most minor transactions generating plenty of interest among hockey fans.

With that in mind we’re going to ask you, the PHR reader, to give us your thoughts on the upcoming season. We start with the Atlantic Division, which last season gave us just three playoff teams but each of them recorded at least 100 points. The Tampa Bay Lightning led the way—just as our community predicted at this time last year—taking home the Presidents Trophy as the league’s best regular season team. Tampa Bay recorded 128 points but were stunned in the first round by the Columbus Blue Jackets and will be looking for revenge.

Tampa Bay is the odds-on favorite to win the division once again in 2019-20, but both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins don’t trail far behind. Not only will those three powerhouses battle it out for positioning at the top of the group, but the Montreal Canadiens and Florida Panthers are both expected to compete for playoff spots and potentially improve on their respective 96 and 86-point seasons. The Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings and Ottawa Senators will all have to make large improvements to get into that playoff race, but as we saw last season with the St. Louis Blues, nothing is impossible in the NHL.

Who do you think will come out on top of the Atlantic Division in the regular season? Can Toronto really come out on top after handing so much of their salary cap to a handful of forwards? Will Boston reach the same level even with Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron another year older? Does the feisty young forward group in Montreal have what it takes to dethrone one of the top three? Cast your vote below and explain how you think the season will play out in the comments!

Who will win the Atlantic Division?

Tampa Bay Lightning 44% (738)
Boston Bruins 18% (293)
Toronto Maple Leafs 17% (282)
Montreal Canadiens 6% (92)
Detroit Red Wings 5% (80)
Buffalo Sabres 5% (79)
Florida Panthers 4% (61)
Ottawa Senators 2% (34)

Total votes: 1,659

[Mobile users click here to vote!]

9 comments Boston Bruins Buffalo Sabres Detroit Red Wings Florida Panthers Montreal Canadiens Ottawa Senators Polls Tampa Bay Lightning Toronto Maple Leafs Pro Hockey Rumors Originals

PHR Originals: 9/23/19 – 9/29/19

By Brian La Rose | at September 29, 2019 7:39 pm

Here is a rundown of the original content over the past seven days here at PHR.

Our look around the Atlantic Division salary cap situations continued as I took a look at the situations in Montreal and Ottawa while Holger did the same for Tampa Bay. While the Canadiens and Senators sit well below the Upper Limit, the Lightning had to make cost-cutting moves this summer, a trend that is likely to continue over the next couple of offseasons as well.

At the start of every season, there are some coaches who are believed to be in danger of losing their job if their team gets off to a slow start. We saw quite a few changes made last season and with a lot of teams expected to be tight in the standings due to increased parity around the league, there could be some quick changes made. Which coaches are most in jeopardy? Click here to make your prediction.

Gavin held his weekly Thursday chat. Topics included the future of Jonathan Quick and Jeff Carter in Los Angeles, his take on the Justin Faulk trade, predictions of what teams could be making trades in the coming days, Philadelphia’s postseason changes, what type of new contracts Alex Pietrangelo and Brayden Schenn may try to get, and more.

The Penguins are on the clock in our 2007 redraft series. They initially took Angelo Esposito who failed to make it into an NHL game and will certainly wind up with a better player in this exercise. Make their selection here.

Our latest mailbag is now available. Topics I tackled in this edition included waiver candidates, Toronto’s salary cap situation, the Faulk trade, forecasting the Metropolitan Division standings, and more.

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Submit Your Questions For The #PHRMailbag

By Gavin Lee | at September 27, 2019 4:00 pm

The 2019-20 NHL regular season is just over a week away and there are still several top restricted free agents unsigned. Even without those players in camp however, teams are completing their final preparations for what should be an extremely exciting year. Teams like the New York Rangers and Arizona Coyotes have big aspirations as they try to get back to the playoffs, while perennial contenders like the Boston Bruins and Nashville Predators will try to overcome that final hurdle.

With that in mind, it’s time to run another edition of our mailbag. You can submit your query by using #PHRMailbag on Twitter or by leaving a comment down below. Make sure you get your questions in early and we’ll try to get through as many as possible when the mailbag runs on the weekend.

If you missed our last edition it was split into two parts you can read here and here. In the first part, Brian tackled questions regarding salary cap projections, the Washington Capitals pending free agents and of course touched on the RFA situations. In the second, he speculated on where he thought Jesse Puljujarvi would fit and gave some predictions on potential surprise playoff teams.

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2007 NHL Draft Take Two: Twentieth Overall Pick

By Gavin Lee | at September 25, 2019 6:05 pm

Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.” Though perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For every Patrick Kane, there is a Patrik Stefan.

We’re looking back at the 2007 NHL Entry Draft and asking how it would shake out knowing what we do now. Will the first round remain the same, or will some late-round picks jump up to the top of the board?

Here are the results of the redraft so far, with their original draft position in parentheses:

1st Overall: Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks (1)
2nd Overall: Jamie Benn, Philadelphia Flyers (129)
3rd Overall: P.K. Subban, Phoenix Coyotes (43)
4th Overall: Logan Couture, Los Angeles Kings (9)
5th Overall: Max Pacioretty, Washington Capitals (22)
6th Overall: Jakub Voracek, Edmonton Oilers (7)
7th Overall: Ryan McDonagh, Columbus Blue Jackets (12)
8th Overall: James van Riemsdyk, Boston Bruins (2)
9th Overall: Wayne Simmonds, San Jose Sharks (61)
10th Overall: Kevin Shattenkirk, Florida Panthers (14)
11th Overall: Jake Muzzin, Carolina Hurricanes (141)
12th Overall: Kyle Turris, Montreal Canadiens (3)
13th Overall: David Perron, St. Louis Blues (26)
14th Overall: Mikael Backlund, Colorado Avalanche (24)
15th Overall: Evgenii Dadonov, Edmonton Oilers (71)
16th Overall: Alec Martinez, Minnesota Wild (95)
17th Overall: Carl Hagelin, New York Rangers (168)
18th Overall: Lars Eller, St. Louis Blues (13)
19th Overall: Alex Killorn, Anaheim Ducks (77)

Another mid-round pick jumps up in Killorn, showing just how hard it is to predict the outcome of an 17-year old prospect at the time of the draft. Born just before the cutoff that would have made Killorn a 2008 draft eligible player, he was one of the youngest available at the time and had only played 25 games of high school hockey in Massachusetts. Still, the Tampa Bay Lightning saw something in the young forward and he ended up being easily their best selection that year. His eventual NHL success wouldn’t come for quite some time however, as Killorn took a long path to the professional ranks.

After spending another year playing high school hockey, the Halifax native ended up heading to Harvard to play for one of the most prestigious and successful programs in the NCAA. By senior year Killorn was a dominant offensive presence for the school, scoring 23 goals and 46 points in 34 games and being named an All-Ivy Leaguer and All-American. That 2011-12 season was already a success, but Killorn jumped into the AHL at the end of the year and helped the Norfolk Admirals all the way to a Calder Cup, scoring 12 points in 17 playoff games. It was clear then that he wouldn’t be long for the minor leagues, and by the end of the following season Killorn was a regular in the Tampa Bay lineup.

In the time since, Killorn has put up consistent offensive production while being a physical presence and moving up and down the roster. It’s his impact in the playoffs that has never wavered from that first season in Norfolk. Through 68 NHL playoff contests, the 30-year old winger has scored 21 goals and 41 points, while being a grinding, frustrating presence for Tampa Bay. Though it hasn’t yet resulted in a Stanley Cup, he’s still an important part of a unit that is one of the best in the NHL.

Back in 2007, the Pittsburgh Penguins were next on the board and had just watched Angelo Esposito drop to them. The QMJHL star had long been a top prospect for the NHL draft and was even ranked the eighth best North American skater by NHL Central Scouting. Still, there were questions about Esposito after he had taken a slight step backwards in his second year of junior hockey (though he still put up 79 points in 60 games for the Quebec Remparts) and those doubts proved correct in the long run, though it wasn’t exactly for reasons within his control.

Two major knee surgeries and several other injuries derailed a promising career, and Esposito barely even played professional hockey, never even sniffing the NHL. His best pro season came in 2011-12 when he recorded 21 points in the AHL, but after bouncing around Europe his playing career ended in 2016. A pick that they would like back, there was still a lot of talent left on the board.

Needless to say, they’ll wind up with a better pick this time around. With the twentieth pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Pittsburgh Penguins select? Cast your vote below!

2007 Redraft: Twentieth Overall

Nick Bonino 19% (179)
Patrick Maroon 16% (154)
Robert Bortuzzo 15% (144)
Justin Braun 9% (82)
Sam Gagner 7% (69)
Ian Cole 7% (65)
Karl Alzner 7% (64)
Brandon Sutter 7% (64)
Paul Byron 5% (46)
Carl Gunnarsson 3% (26)
Riley Nash 3% (25)
Thomas Hickey 2% (19)
Brendan Smith 1% (9)
Colton Sceviour 0% (4)

Total votes: 950

[Mobile users click here to vote]

*Tragically, 17th overall pick Alexei Cherepanov died at the age of 19 and would never get a chance to suit up in the NHL. He has not been included in this vote.

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PHR Originals: 9/16/19 – 9/22/19

By Brian La Rose | at September 22, 2019 7:54 pm

Here is a rundown of the original content over the past seven days here at PHR.

Our look around the salary cap situation continues as we started our look at the Atlantic Division. Zach broke down the situation for Boston while I did the same for Buffalo, Detroit, and Florida. Despite missing the playoffs last year, both the Sabres and Panthers find themselves fairly close to the Upper Limit heading into the season.

There are five high-quality remaining restricted free agents around the league in Brayden Point (Tampa Bay), Mikko Rantanen (Colorado), Matthew Tkachuk (Calgary), plus Kyle Connor and Patrik Laine (Winnipeg). At this point, it’s starting to look likely that at least one of these will carry over into the season. Which player is most likely to remain unsigned when the puck gets dropped to start the regular season? Make your prediction here.

Gavin held his weekly Thursday chat. Topics included Jared Spurgeon’s long-term extension, the Dustin Byfuglien situation in Winnipeg, a prediction on Chris Kreider’s future with the Rangers, a projection for what top pick Jack Hughes does this season, a discussion on Carolina’s stockpiling of defensemen, and more.

Our 2007 redraft series continues as we wrap up the selections in the teens. Winger Carl Hagelin went to the Rangers with the 17th selection while Lars Eller dropped five spots from his original draft slot but still wound up with the team that initially drafted him in St. Louis. Anaheim is now on the clock and will undoubtedly wind up with a pick that had more NHL success than their actual selection. Make your pick for them here.

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2007 NHL Draft Take Two: Nineteenth Overall Pick

By Brian La Rose | at September 21, 2019 1:58 pm

Here are the results of the redraft so far, with their original draft position in parentheses:

Eller winds up dipping five spots from his initial selection but still winds going to the team that actually drafted him. His career can be viewed through a glass half full or half empty lens which is why he slots in here despite having the eighth-most games played of anyone in this draft class.

The Blues selected him out the Swedish junior league where he tied for the league lead in scoring. Coincidentally, the player he tied with was the 17th pick in this redraft. He then split the following season between their top two pro leagues before moving up to the SEL (now SHL) on a full-time basis in 2008-09.

Along the way, he produced enough to give St. Louis hope that they had a capable two-way center on their hands. He impressed in his first season in North America, collecting 57 points in 70 AHL games plus a pair of goals in seven contests with the Blues.

That was enough to garner the attention of Montreal, who made him the centerpiece of the return that saw the Blues pick up goaltender Jaroslav Halak. The Canadiens hoped that he’d be a core center for them, a position that turned out to be a long-term area of weakness.

However, while Eller showed flashes of his offensive upside, he wasn’t able to put it together on a consistent basis and never surpassed the 30-point mark over his six seasons with the team. Oddly enough, his best season offensively with them came in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign.

Convinced that he had reached his ceiling with Montreal, the team turned around and traded him to Washington for a pair of second-round picks at the 2016 draft. The change of scenery has done him some good as despite playing almost exclusively on the third line with the Capitals, Eller has set new career bests in points in each of the last two seasons. He’s signed through 2022-23 so if he stays healthy throughout that time, he’ll have a chance to reach the 1,000 games played mark by the end of his contract.

Now we move on to the 19th pick that was held by the Anaheim Ducks after trading down from 16 in a deal that needed them a second-round pick. They selected forward Logan MacMillan out of Halifax of the QMJHL following a strong showing in the postseason. Unfortunately for them, that performance wasn’t a sign of things to come. Following his junior career, he spent his first pro season in the ECHL before being dealt to Calgary for veteran AHL forward Jason Jaffray. The change of scenery didn’t help as he spent the next two seasons in the minors with the Flames before being non-tendered. MacMillan then began an international hockey nomadic journey with stints in Austria, Kazakhstan, Russia, England, and Romania.

Needless to say, they’ll wind up with a better pick this time around. With the nineteenth pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Anaheim Ducks select? Cast your vote below!

2007 Redraft: Nineteenth Overall

Alex Killorn 20% (77)
Patrick Maroon 18% (67)
Nick Bonino 9% (34)
Justin Braun 8% (31)
Sam Gagner 7% (27)
Ian Cole 7% (25)
Karl Alzner 7% (25)
Paul Byron 6% (22)
Brandon Sutter 5% (20)
Riley Nash 4% (17)
Carl Gunnarsson 4% (14)
Robert Bortuzzo 2% (9)
Thomas Hickey 2% (6)
Brendan Smith 1% (5)
Colton Sceviour 0% (1)

Total votes: 380

Mobile users, click here to vote.

*Tragically, 17th overall pick Alexei Cherepanov died at the age of 19 and would never get a chance to suit up in the NHL. He has not been included in this vote.

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2007 NHL Draft Take Two: Eighteenth Overall Pick

By Gavin Lee | at September 19, 2019 8:48 pm

Here are the results of the redraft so far, with their original draft position in parentheses:

At this point in the draft, you can start to see exactly why teams are starting to realize that late first-round picks aren’t quite as valuable as they appear. Even when picking from the entire draft class, a forward that still hasn’t cracked 100 NHL goals is the 17th-best selection. That’s not to say that Hagelin hasn’t had a successful career, but simply landing a full-time NHL player in the second half of the round should be considered a win.

When the draft rolled around in 2007, Hagelin had already been passed over entirely in his first year of eligibility and didn’t even land on the NHL Central Scouting list. After getting grabbed by the Rangers late in the draft, the young Swede would make history by heading to the University of Michigan. Hagelin became only the second European player to suit up for the Wolverines, and then even became the team’s (co-)captain in his senior season, a tremendous honor for a player that was such an outsider when he began his time there. Scoring 152 points in four years, Hagelin would make the jump to the NHL for the Rangers in 2011 and become an impact player immediately because of his blazing speed.

As a rookie, Hagelin would play in 17 playoff games for the Rangers, something that would become routine for him throughout his career. An incredible 19% of all the games he’s ever played in the NHL have come in the postseason, suiting up 128 times over the years with various teams. Hagelin won the Stanley Cup in back-to-back years with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and won an Olympic silver medal in 2014.

Never a top offensive option in the NHL, Hagelin has 241 points in his 546 regular season contests and never did crack the 40-point barrier in a single season. Last year he totaled just 18 points while wearing three different uniforms, but with his speed and penalty killing ability is going to stick around for quite some time.

Back in 2007, the St. Louis Blues held the 18th pick after a trade with the Calgary Flames, and they wouldn’t whiff like some of the others before them. Even though some of the higher ranked names like Angelo Esposito and Stefan Legein were still on the board, the Blues reached all the way down for USNTDP defenseman Ian Cole. Cole had been ranked 81st among North American skaters despite showing well for the development program and at the U18 World Juniors, and the Blues’ confidence in him would pay off. After three seasons at Notre Dame, Cole would make the jump to the professional level and end up in 26 games for the Blues in his first full year.

Cole continued to find playing time for St. Louis, but really took his game to the next level following a trade to the Pittsburgh Penguins (one that included fellow 2007 draftee Robert Bortuzzo). After winning two Stanley Cups with the Penguins he’s bounced around, but is an important part of the Colorado blueline for the upcoming season. He ranks ninth among all 2007 defensemen in games played and tenth in points. Still available in our redraft, is Cole still the right choice for St. Louis?

With the eighteenth pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, who should the St. Louis Blues select? Cast your vote below!

2007 Redraft: Eighteenth Overall

Lars Eller 21% (130)
Alex Killorn 15% (93)
Patrick Maroon 14% (85)
Nick Bonino 8% (53)
Ian Cole 8% (48)
Justin Braun 7% (44)
Sam Gagner 6% (40)
Karl Alzner 6% (36)
Brandon Sutter 3% (20)
Paul Byron 3% (18)
Carl Gunnarsson 3% (16)
Thomas Hickey 2% (12)
Riley Nash 2% (12)
Robert Bortuzzo 2% (10)
Colton Sceviour 1% (6)
Brendan Smith 0% (3)

Total votes: 626

[Mobile users click here to vote]

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2007 NHL Draft Take Two: Seventeenth Overall Pick

By Gavin Lee | at September 17, 2019 2:34 pm

Here are the results of the redraft so far, with their original draft position in parentheses:

As the back half of the first round gets underway, the Wild snatch up a solid and perhaps underrated defenseman in Martinez. That’s a huge raise for a player who wasn’t even selected in his first two years of eligibility or ranked at all by NHL Central Scouting. Martinez, who was set to turn 20 the month following the draft, had already played two seasons at Miami University (Ohio) and showed he could be a reliable two-way presence. Though there is obviously risk in drafting a player already deep into his college years—the Kings could have lost him to unrestricted free agency just two summers later—they ended up convincing him to sign in 2008 and he quickly became a rising star in the organization.

Making his debut during the 2009-10 season, it would be just a couple of years before he was a huge part of the team’s 2012 Stanley Cup championship. A few years after that he would scoring the Cup-winning goal in the Kings’ second title—in double overtime to boot—cementing him in franchise lore. Jumping up into the rush wasn’t something Martinez made a habit of, but it is well within his capabilities. Through a decade with the Kings he has played 556 regular season games, scoring 61 goals and 190 points. That puts him fifth among all defensemen selected in the 2007 draft, despite almost slipping out of the top-100 picks.

The New York Rangers, who selected 17th in 2007, will never know if they made the right choice. Only one player to that point—Lars Eller at 13th—had been selected from outside of North America, so the Rangers decided to test their luck with the supremely skilled Russian forward Alexei Cherepanov. The young winger had just recorded 36 points in 57 games at the highest level of Russian hockey, won gold at the U18 and silver at the U20 World Juniors while being named the tournament’s best forward. Cherepanov was the highest ranked international skater by NHL Central Scouting, and looked like a lock to be a top-line player in the NHL if the Rangers could convince him to come over.

Tragically however, just 16 months later in the first official KHL season, Cherepanov would collapse on the bench. He was pronounced dead at hospital later that day while he was still just 19 years old. Playing on a team with Jaromir Jagr, Cherepanov was off to a blazing start with eight goals and 13 points in 15 games. His potential seemed boundless, but the Rangers never got to find out what he could do at the highest level of hockey. The KHL has since named their Rookie of the Year trophy after Cherepanov, while Avangard retired his jersey number.

If you gave the Rangers front office the pick over again, you can bet they would select Cherepanov again. We have chosen to exclude him from this exercise, meaning someone else will have to take his place on the list.

With the seventeenth pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, who should the New York Rangers select? Cast your vote below!

2007 Redraft: Seventeenth Overall

Carl Hagelin 18% (127)
Lars Eller 16% (115)
Alex Killorn 14% (97)
Patrick Maroon 9% (64)
Sam Gagner 8% (58)
Nick Bonino 8% (58)
Justin Braun 5% (32)
Brandon Sutter 4% (27)
Karl Alzner 4% (25)
Ian Cole 4% (25)
Paul Byron 3% (19)
Carl Gunnarsson 2% (14)
Thomas Hickey 2% (13)
Robert Bortuzzo 2% (12)
Riley Nash 2% (11)
Brendan Smith 1% (5)
Colton Sceviour 1% (4)

Total votes: 706

[Mobile users click here to vote]

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2007 NHL Draft Take Two: Sixteenth Overall Pick

By Gavin Lee | at September 13, 2019 5:50 pm

Here are the results of the redraft so far, with their original draft position in parentheses:

Another mid-round pick jumps into the top half of our first round as Dadonov is the Oilers selection. They would certainly like him more than Alex Plante who they actually took in that spot 12 years ago, but Dadonov comes with his fair share of frustrations as well. Picked out of Russia after making his debut at the highest level there, Dadonov wouldn’t suit up for a North American team until 2009. That year he showed exactly why the Florida Panthers spent the 71st pick on him by scoring 40 points in 76 games at the AHL level and making his NHL debut, but it wasn’t all followed by roses.

After bouncing back and forth between the two leagues for most of the next two seasons, Dadonov was actually traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in a minor deal in January of 2012. He would never suit up for the Hurricanes, instead spending the rest of the season with the Charlotte Checkers, before deciding the minor leagues weren’t for him. Dadonov returned to Russia and the KHL where he would spend the next five seasons, eventually becoming one of the league’s most consistent offensive producers. After a 66-point season with St. Petersburg in 2016-17, the Panthers decided to pursue their old flame once again and brought him back to North America. This time, there would be no minors.

Over the last two seasons Dadonov has proven to be one of the increasingly rare success stories to come back from the KHL and produce, scoring 56 goals and 135 points in 156 games. Finding immediate chemistry with some of the other talented forwards in Florida, he’s now actually closing in on a potentially large contract in free agency. Dadonov’s current deal expires after this season and if he decides to stay in North America there will be plenty of suitors who believe he could give their team an offensive punch.

It is interesting though that the 30-year old winger comes in this high. Because of his time away from the NHL he ranks 24th in points among players selected in 2007, and has still only played 211 games in the league. Obviously his skill and production over the last two seasons have swayed voters enough to believe he was the right choice at 15th overall.

He certainly could have been the right pick for the Minnesota Wild, who held selected 16. After the Carolina Hurricanes wagered on NHL bloodlines by picking Brandon Sutter earlier in the round, the Wild followed suit by snapping up Colton Gillies, a big winger out of the Western Hockey League. Gillies had only scored 13 goals and 30 points that season for the Saksatoon Blades, but he was the nephew of Hall of Fame forward Clarke Gillies who had won four Stanley Cups with the New York Islanders. The younger Gillies had shown his physicality even as a young player in the WHL, and the Wild must have hoped they could pull out some of his family’s offensive history.

Unfortunately, that never happened. In 154 NHL contests, Gillies recorded just six goals and 18 points. He left for the Slovakian league in 2015 and ended up in the KHL where he plays to this day. The 16th overall pick is still not much of a scorer, making him another first-round bust from 2007. If Minnesota had the chance again they may have taken someone else, but who?

With the sixteenth pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Minnesota Wild select? Cast your vote below!

2007 Redraft: Sixteenth Overall

Alec Martinez 25% (108)
Carl Hagelin 13% (57)
Lars Eller 11% (49)
Alex Killorn 9% (38)
Patrick Maroon 8% (35)
Sam Gagner 7% (31)
Nick Bonino 5% (20)
Justin Braun 4% (19)
Karl Alzner 3% (15)
Paul Byron 3% (15)
Brandon Sutter 3% (11)
Carl Gunnarsson 2% (10)
Thomas Hickey 2% (8)
Riley Nash 2% (7)
Ian Cole 1% (6)
Brendan Smith 1% (5)
Colton Sceviour 0% (2)

Total votes: 436

[Mobile users click here to vote!]

*Tragically, 17th overall pick Alexei Cherepanov died at the age of 19 and would never get a chance to suit up in the NHL. He has not been included in this vote.

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2007 NHL Draft Take Two: Fifteenth Overall Pick

By Gavin Lee | at September 9, 2019 4:49 pm

Here are the results of the redraft so far, with their original draft position in parentheses:

Narrowly edging out the competition for 14th is Mikael Backlund, who jumps up ten spots from his original draft position with the Calgary Flames. In 2007 he had just been ranked the second best European skater by NHL Central Scouting, but given his three-point draft year output in the Swedish second league there was a level of unfamiliarity with Backlund at the time. For fans in Western Canada that unfamiliarity would quickly disappear. In 2008-09 after starting the year in Sweden, Backlund would attend the World Juniors in Ottawa and dominate en route to a silver medal. He would then play a single game with the Flames before joining the Kelown Rockets of the WHL, where he put up 53 points in 47 games and won a league championship.

Unfortunately through the first few seasons of his NHL career, it appeared as though his offense would never materialize. Recording just 62 points through his first 170 games, Backlund finally broke out in 2013-14 with a strong 18-goal campaign. That offense would continue to pour out of the forward to the point where he is now an integral part of the team’s attack and locked in as their second-line center. In 2018, Calgary signed Backlund to a six-year extension worth a total of $32.1MM, showing just how important they believe him to be.

Even with the slow start, Backlund ranks 13th in points among all players drafted in 2007 (11th among forwards) and seems to be just getting stronger as a two-way option for the Flames. On a list that doesn’t include many players who have spent their whole careers with the team that drafted them, he clearly deserves to be in the top half of the first round.

When the Edmonton Oilers strode to the podium in 2007 with the 15th pick, they should have taken Backlund or any of the other players who have jumped up our board. Instead, with the second of three first round picks (Sam Gagner went sixth overall), they decided to take Alex Plante. Perhaps it was because they held so many picks, but Plante was a reach of immense proportion. The 6’3″ defenseman had been ranked 72nd among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting but a strong playoff with the Calgary Hitmen of the WHL had turned some heads. Unfortunately, things quickly went downhill.

In his first year after being drafted, Plante dealt with injuries and tried to force his way out of the Hitmen organization—a move that would ultimately backfire—while recording just six points in 51 games. Upon turning pro it was obvious that Plante would never be able to contribute offensively, and his footspeed was questioned at every level. He did end up playing in ten games over three years with the Oilers, but parted ways with the organization in 2013 before playing in Austria and South Korea (in fact, he played for South Korea at the Olympics and World Championship in 2018 after getting his citizenship.)

Plante was not the right pick at the time and comes in as the second real bust of the draft so far. If given the chance to do it again, the Oilers would certainly pick someone else.

With the fifteenth pick of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Edmonton Oilers select? Cast your vote below!

2007 Redraft: Fifteenth Overall

Evgenii Dadonov 23% (177)
Alec Martinez 19% (146)
Carl Hagelin 12% (92)
Patrick Maroon 7% (56)
Lars Eller 7% (51)
Alex Killorn 6% (48)
Sam Gagner 5% (39)
Nick Bonino 3% (26)
Karl Alzner 3% (26)
Justin Braun 3% (21)
Brandon Sutter 3% (20)
Paul Byron 3% (20)
Ian Cole 2% (15)
Carl Gunnarsson 2% (14)
Riley Nash 1% (10)
Thomas Hickey 1% (10)
Brendan Smith 0% (3)
Colton Sceviour 0% (1)

Total votes: 775

[Mobile users click here to vote]

*Tragically, 17th overall pick Alexei Cherepanov died at the age of 19 and would never get a chance to suit up in the NHL. He has not been included in this vote.

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